


The Wedding Night

by VirginiasWolf



Series: Life Moves On [11]
Category: Death in Paradise
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:01:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,485
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24685036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VirginiasWolf/pseuds/VirginiasWolf
Summary: It certainly won't be a typical wedding night, but it will be one that makes Camille sure that she has chosen to marry the right man.Part of Life Moves On
Relationships: Camille Bordey/Richard Poole
Series: Life Moves On [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1456375
Comments: 7
Kudos: 14





	The Wedding Night

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place the same day as Pooles in Pajamas. We already know what happened before the ceremony, but now we get to find out what happens after.

It's strange and a little terrifying to Camille how different today feels from what she had imagined it would. Ever since she was a little girl, she had dreamed of having the perfect wedding. Throughout the years she had placed whomever her current beau was in the role of the groom, even going so far as to change her fantasy just enough to accommodate what quirks he might have, but the one thing she had never planned for was a particularly aggressive menstruation cycle striking on the big day.

  
Now instead of feeling the joyous euphoria of being newly married and celebrating with all of her friends, she is relieved to have been able to ditch the reception and just be curled up under a blanket on the couch at home. 

  
To make matters worse, her new husband isn't even in the room with her right now. He's been so attentive to her all day, but perhaps he has finally grown exhausted. She knows he is in their kitchen and dining room combo which happens to be the very next room, and it sounds like he may be talking to someone, but due to the sound of the washing machine being run, she has no idea what is being said.

  
She doesn't think Richard is being intentionally rude, but for as long as she's known him he has been a man of tradition and her accidental stunt today has forced him to break every tradition.

  
After a moment, he stops talking and the sound of footsteps tells her that he is about to enter the living room. As he does, he is carrying a wrapped bundle in his arms. "You should probably put this on your stomach."

  
As Camille reaches out for the bundle she realizes it happens to be a heated water bottle, but before she can respond with a thank you for the new source of warmth to counter her cramps, he is already gone again leaving her to feel frustrated enough that she is almost on the verge of another meltdown like so many she has already had today. It's bad enough that she already knows that several members of his family now find her to be irrational and bitchy, and she doesn't need the added feeling of believing he's trying to distance himself for the night. 

  
Camille scrunches her eyes shut trying to fight off the tears that threaten to fall again. Why do hormones have to be so ridiculous? She should be so happy that she can't stop smiling right now.

  
"Please don't start crying again." When Camille opens her eyes again, Richard is sitting next to her on the couch. There is so much concern in those beautiful green eyes of his that she has no doubt that he cares for her. "Takeout won't be here for another forty-five minutes, but I thought we could have dessert first."

  
Dessert. It surprises Camille how much that word perks her up, almost like a little kid. Had that been why he had left the room again after handing her the heated water bottle? Before she can ask exactly what kind of dessert they will be having, Richard holds out a plate containing a large piece of chocolate cake with coconut frosting. She knows exactly what kind of frosting it is, because this is a slice of their wedding cake. The one thing that confuses her though is that the plate only has one fork on it.

  
"You only bought one fork?"

  
Richard blushes. "I umm...I thought that maybe you'd let me feed you. I know it sounds a bit silly, but I umm...I thought it might be romantic, but I can go get another fork if you'd like."

  
Just as he's about to get up Camille reaches out from under her blanket and puts a hand on his arm. "It will be romantic."

  
The cake tastes wonderful, but it can't compare to how good it feels to just be doted on, not to mention Richard isn't gloating in the least about how passive she is being. He seems to understand that she just needs him to be gentle with her right now. At one point he even reaches out and brushes a bit of frosting away from her lip with his thumb.

  
As soon as they've both finished eating, he puts the plate on a side table and Camille nestles against him with a soft sigh. "I'm sorry I ruined our wedding."

  
Richard turns to her with an adorably knitted brow. "How was our wedding ruined?"

  
"Because it wasn't traditional and your aunts hate me now."

  
For a second Richard looks as if he is going to laugh, but he restrains himself when he seems to realize how it might make her feel. "Aunt Jo hates everybody, including her own husband and Aunt Claire believes I am a secret homosexual who only married you because no self-respecting English woman would agree to be my beard. Trust me Camille, you don't want either of them to like you. Thought I might have at least been able to appease them by agreeing to stay with my parents last night, but I doubt even that helped. At least it made you happy though."

  
Camille decides to avoid asking what a beard is in this particular context even though the term confuses her. Instead she focuses on the other part of what Richard had said. "I thought you wanted to spend the night separate to keep with tradition?"

  
"I don't think we've spent a night apart since we started dating, and I umm...I felt weird trying to fall asleep alone. I missed you."

  
"I missed you too last night," Camille admits, "and it is a ridiculous tradition when the bride and groom already live together and we have already not had a traditional love story."

  
Much to her surprise, Richard nods in agreement before kissing her on the forehead. "I think in some ways traditional is becoming less and less appealing to me."

  
At this Camille can't help but sit up with a start. "Did I just hear the Richard Poole say that he no longer wants to be traditional?"

  
At first Richard looks as if he is going to form some rebuttal, but before he can do so the doorbell rings. Instead he stands up and puts on an expression of mock upset. "There will be no more smart mouth from you Mrs. or I might just leave you to fend for yourself after dinner."

  
Although the fake seriousness of his tone makes Camille want to giggle, she decides to hold off. It isn't so much that she needs Richard to help her out, but she is curious to find out what else he has in store for her if she behaves. He really has been quite sweet to her so far.

  
A minute later he returns with a bag of Chinese takeout before disappearing to the kitchen and returning again with two drinks, a beer for him and a water for her. Camille initially starts to protest before remembering that alcohol is one of the substances which tends to worsen period cramps. She'll have to ask her new husband later how he knows so much about handling menstruation, but right now she is just glad that he isn't treating her like a hysterical mess.

  
As they eat, she takes time to examine him. It isn't as if she hasn't done so before, but he is no longer just Richard her coworker, or even Richard her boyfriend. He is officially the man that she plans to spend the rest of her life with if all goes to plan and this paints him in a new light. 

  
She knows that to most people he would probably appear so ordinary that he wouldn't warrant a second glance, but to her, he is beautiful in his own English sort of way. As ridiculous as he probably finds the concept of soulmates to be, she also has no doubt that he is hers. This timid, gentle Englishman who is so much the opposite of everything she has long considered herself to be is the only man who can truly soothe her soul and somehow even on days like today he doesn't find her to be too much to handle even though so many men who have insisted they were much stronger than him have balked at the thought of handling her at her worst.

  
After they have finished eating, Richard leaves the room to put their dishes in the sink and Camille lets out a yawn that is somehow loud enough to be heard in the other room causing Richard to immediately return. "That's it. I'm ordering you to bed right now."

  
Camille finds herself thinking for a moment, trying to come up with a compromise. "Only if I can fall asleep in your arms."


End file.
